Nelson-Sandpoint sister city agreement no “fluff”

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Photo courtesy discovernelson.com

Nelson, B.C., and Sandpoint, Idaho, have agreed to form a sister city relationship—but it won't take effect until next March when the city's current agreement with Baie-Saint-Paul, Quebec expires.

A similar sister city agreement was struck in 1985 between Sandpoint and Nelson, however, that original relationship was allowed to wane over the years.

Sandpoint Magazine reported earlier this year, “Nelson, British Columbia, an anchor city on the International Selkirk Loop, is an arts community of less than 10,000 people nestled on a lake below a ski resort in the Selkirk Mountains. Sound familiar? That description matches Sandpoint exactly, and that’s why leaders in both communities believe they were meant to be sister cities.”

Nelson Chamber of Commerce executive Tom Thomson, is quoted as saying, “At this point, there is certainly political will and community will to make this sister city arrangement happen in the near future.” 

His Sandpoint equivalent Kate McAlister stated, “Most sister cities (agreements) are fluff, but this liaison will have real substance, improving economic vitality in the region.”

For a number of years the City of Cranbrook and Coeur d’Alene, Idaho had a sister city relationship, however that sibling tie does not seem to be active any more, with the City of Cranbrook pursuing a sister city relationships farther afield in Korea or China.